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According to what Raphel had shared with Jay, the old preacher had been abusing his young wife. Church members had turned their heads with the mind-set that what went on behind a married couple’s closed doors was their business, especially when it involved a preacher.
Evidently, Raphel hadn’t seen it that way. He had come up with a plan to rescue Lila from the clutches of the abusive preacher—a plan his family had not supported. After taking Lila as far away as Texas, Raphel had helped her get established in the small Texas town of Copperhead, on the outskirts of Austin. Raphel had been her protector, never her lover, and before moving on he had purchased a small tract of land and given it to her to make a new beginning for herself.
Dillon smiled, thinking, at least in the case of Lila, Raphel had been a wife saver and not a wife stealer. Given the woman’s situation, Dillon figured he would have done the same thing. He’d discovered that when it came to the opposite sex, Westmoreland men had this ingrained sense of protection. He just regretted that Raphel had severed ties with his family.
At that moment Dillon’s stomach started to growl, reminding him that he hadn’t eaten anything since early that morning and it was afternoon already. It was time for him to head back over to the hotel.
* * *
Pam had been intensely involved in reading one of her students’ scripts when suddenly she felt sensations curl inside her stomach at the same time chill bumps began to form on her arms.
She glanced up and met Dillon’s gaze as he stepped into the kitchen. She wondered how her body had known of his presence before her mind. And why even now the sensations curling her stomach had intensified. She decided to speak before he had a chance to do so, not sure what havoc the sensations combined with his deep, disturbingly sexy voice would play on her senses.
“How did things go? Did you discover anything about your great-grandfather that you didn’t know before?” she asked, hoping he didn’t hear the strain in her voice.
He smiled, and the effect of that smile was just as bad as if he’d spoken. He had a dimpled smile that showed beautiful white teeth. “Yes. At least, thanks to your great-grandfather’s journal, I was able to solve the mystery of Lila, woman number one.”
“Did they eventually marry?” she asked, curiously.
“No, from what I read, Lila’s preacher husband was an abusive man and Lila sought out Raphel’s help to escape the situation. He took her as far as Copperhead, Texas, hung around while she got on her feet, established her with a new identity and then moved on.”
Pam nodded. “That explains why he wasn’t married when he arrived here in Gamble.”
“Yes, but it doesn’t explain why he would run off with your great-grandfather’s wife. And so far nothing I’ve read explains it, but then I didn’t get through the entire journal. Not even halfway. Jay would digress and talk about the dairy business and how it was doing. But from what I’ve read so far, it seemed that he and Raphel were close, which doesn’t explain how my great-grandfather could betray him the way he did.”
Pam didn’t say anything for a moment and then she asked, “So, are you taking a break before reading some more?”
“No, it’s getting late and I think it won’t be a good idea to be here when your fiancé arrives this evening. I’ve outstayed my welcome today anyway, and I appreciate you giving me a chance to read the journal.”
“You’re welcome.” And before she could think better of her actions, she said, “And I’d like to invite you to stay for dinner. I’m sure my sisters would love hearing what you’ve discovered today. I think you piqued their interest at dinner yesterday and they see this as some sort of family mystery needing to be solved. At some time or another everyone has heard about Raphel Westmoreland and how he ran off with my great-grandfather’s first wife.”
Dillon leaned against the kitchen cabinet. “I’m surprised no one in your family has been curious enough to find out what really happened.”
Pam shrugged. “I guess you have to understand how some women think, namely my great-grandmother. I’m sure she could have cared less why her predecessor ran off with another man, and the less the family talked about Portia, the better.”
She tilted her head and looked up at him. “So will you take me up on my invitation and stay for dinner?”
Pam’s words intruded into his thoughts and he looked up and over at her, holding her gaze a moment. “And what about Fletcher? How is he going to handle me sitting at your dinner table two evenings in a row?”
He watched as she nervously bit her bottom lip and then lifted her chin. “There’s nothing wrong with me inviting someone I consider a family friend to dinner. Besides, Fletcher is out of town for a few days.”
He nodded, considered her words and decided not to read anything into them. It was an invitation to dinner, nothing more. As long as he remembered she was an engaged woman, everything would be all right.
Only problem with that was that the more he saw her, and the more he was around her, the more he was attracted to her. And the more he was attracted to her, the more he could admit, whether it was honorable or not, that he wanted her.
He swallowed and intentionally glanced out the window, needing to break eye contact with Pam. What he’d just inwardly admitted wasn’t good, but he was being honest with himself. That meant as soon as he could find out all the answers he wanted about Raphel, he hoped in the next couple of days, he would return home.
He glanced back at her, met her gaze, felt the pull, the attraction, and although she might never admit it to anyone, not even to herself, he knew it was mutual. He knew he should ask if he could take the journal back to the hotel and spend the next several days reading it, out of such close proximity to her and this unusual sexual chemistry he felt whenever they were near each other.
But for some reason he couldn’t. “If you’re sure it will be okay then, yes, I’d love to join you and your sisters for dinner.”
* * *
“And you’re sure he’s coming back for dinner, Pammie?” Nadia asked with excitement in her voice as she helped her oldest sister set the table.
Pam lifted a brow. She couldn’t remember the last time Nadia or Paige had gotten excited about someone coming for dinner, least of all a man. The first time she had invited Fletcher, they had almost boycotted dinner until she’d had a good, hard talk about being courteous and displaying Novak manners.
“Yes, he said he was going back to the hotel to change clothes and would be coming back.”
“And don’t you think he’s very handsome, Pam?” Paige chimed in to ask.
Pam turned after placing the last plate on the table and faced her three sisters. Although Jill hadn’t voiced her excitement, Pam knew it was there—she could clearly see it on her face. The one thing she didn’t want her sisters to think was that Dillon’s presence at dinner had anything to do with her engagement to Fletcher. She knew what they were trying to do, and it was time she made sure they understood that it wasn’t working.
“Yes, he is handsome, Paige, but so is Fletcher. But I’m not marrying a man because of his looks. I’m not that vain and I hope the three of you aren’t, either. To set the record straight, so the three of you fully know that what you’re doing isn’t working, I will be marrying Fletcher.”
Jill smiled. “We have no idea what you’re talking about, Pam.”
Pam rolled her eyes and was about to give them a good talking-to when the sound of the doorbell stopped her. “Okay, that’s our guest and I want you on your best behavior, and please keep in mind that I am engaged to marry Fletcher.”
Jill made a face and then said, “Please, don’t remind us.”
* * *
“We’re glad you found out something about your great-grandfather today, Dillon,” Nadia said, smiling.
Dillon couldn’t help but return her smile, thinking she reminded him a lot of his cousin Bailey when she’d been Nadia’s age. There was an innocence about her, while at the same time if you looked into her eyes long enough, there was mischief there, as well. The same thing could be said about Paige, but Jill was a different story.
There was something about her and her antics tonight that reminded him of Bane. The thought of a female Bane made him cringe more than a little. Her eyes twinkled when she encouraged him to talk about his family. He couldn’t help but wonder if she was truly interested, or if her inquisition was a ploy. And he was smart enough to figure out it all came back to the same thing as last night. For some reason Pam’s sisters were not happy with the man she had chosen to marry. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see that.
“Would you like something more to eat, Dillon?”
He glanced over at Pam. Their gazes met across the table and he smiled while at the same time fought down the tightening of his gut. He’d never been a man easily distracted by a beautiful face, but in the last forty-eight hours he’d known the real experience of feeling weak in the knees and having his heart thud mercilessly in his chest.
“No, and I appreciate your invitation to dinner.”
“Tell us some more about Bane. He sounds like someone I’d like to meet one day,” Jill said.
“No, he’s not,” both Dillon and Pam said simultaneously, and then they couldn’t help but glance across the table at each other and laugh. They agreed with each other on that point.
Pam excused herself to go get dessert, a chocolate cake she had baked earlier. Dillon smiled at the three females staring at him and, as soon as Pam left the room, he was surprised when they lit into him with questions they dared not ask while their older sister was still in the room.
Nadia went first. Her dark eyes, as beautiful as her older sister’s, stared him down. “Do you think Pammie is pretty?”
He smiled. That was easy enough for him to answer and do so truthfully. “Yes, she’s pretty.”
“Do you have a girlfriend?” Paige quickly asked.
He chuckled. “No, I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Would you be interested in Pam if she wasn’t engaged?”
Jill’s question would have shocked the hell out of him if he hadn’t gotten used to her tactics by now. She shot straight from the hip and he intended to answer her the same way.
“The key point to remember is that your sister is engaged, so whether I would be interested is a moot point, now, isn’t it? But to answer your question, my answer would be yes, I would be interested.”
“Interested in what?” Pam asked, returning and toting a plate with a huge chocolate cake.
“Nothing,” three voices said at once.
Pam lifted a brow as she glanced at her sisters. She then looked over at Dillon and he couldn’t help but smile and shrug his shoulders. Joining Pam and her sisters for dinner made him feel right at home and he wasn’t sure that was a good thing.
* * *
“I think I need to apologize for anything my sisters might have said that could have grated on your nerves tonight,” Pam said, walking Dillon out to his car. She had convinced herself this would be the only way she could get a few private words in without her sisters’ ears perking at each and every word.
He chuckled. “Hey, it wasn’t bad. I enjoyed their company. Yours, too. And dinner was wonderful.”
“Thanks.”
They didn’t say anything for a few moments and then she asked, “Will you be coming back tomorrow? To continue reading Jay’s journal?”
When they came to his car he leaned against it to face her. “Only if you say it’s okay. I don’t want to wear out my welcome.”
She chuckled. “You won’t be. Besides, finding out more about Raphel and Portia is like a puzzle waiting to be pieced together.”
Pam knew she probably should suggest that he take the journal with him—that way he wouldn’t have to bother coming back tomorrow—but for some reason she couldn’t do that.
“Well, I guess I’d better let you go now. See you tomorrow,” she said, backing up, putting proper distance between them.
“Good night,” he said.
Dillon opened the door and got into the car but sat there until Pam had raced up the stairs, let herself inside and closed the door behind her. He saw three pairs of curtains automatically fall back into place in upstairs windows, and couldn’t help but chuckle at the notion that he and Pam had been spied on. To be honest, he wasn’t surprised.
As he drove off, he could only shake his head when he remembered his siblings’ and cousins’ reaction to Tammi when he’d brought her home, a year before they’d married. Although his parents and aunt and uncle had tried making the Westmoreland clan behave, it had been pretty obvious that Tammi hadn’t been too well received. But that hadn’t stopped him for marrying her the following year and bringing her home as his wife. Now he wished that it had.
He shifted in his seat to pull his cell phone out of his jeans pocket, hoping tonight he could pick up a signal. He smiled when he did and immediately placed a call home.
Ramsey answered on the second ring. “The Westmorelands.”
“Hey, Ram, it’s Dillon. How are things going?”
“As well as can be expected. Bane’s been behaving, so that’s good.”
Yes, that was good, Dillon thought.
“I went up to the big house and got all your mail,” Ramsey was saying.
“Thanks.”
“You find out anything on Raphel yet?” Ramsey asked.
“Yes.” Dillon then spent the next half hour bringing his cousin up to date on what he’d uncovered that day from Jay’s journal.
“And Jay Novak’s great-granddaughter is actually nice to you? After Raphel ran off with her great-grandfather’s wife?”
Dillon chuckled. “Yes, she’s operating on the premise of good riddance. If Portia hadn’t left then Jay would never have met and married her great-grandmother. Needless to say, Pam has no problem with Raphel running off with the woman.”
“Pam?”
Dillon heard the curiosity in Ramsey’s voice and knew why. Ramsey of all people knew how hard it had been in making the real estate firm he had inherited from his father and uncle into the billion-dollar company it was today, taking care of the Westmoreland stronghold and being responsible for all those Westmorelands who were still dependent while they were away at college.
“Yes, Pam is her name, and before you ask, the answer again is yes, she is beautiful. The most beautiful woman I’ve ever set eyes on.”
And before Ramsey could say anything, he quickly added, “And she’s engaged.”
“Umm, have you met her fiancé?” Ramsey wanted to know.
“Yes, and he’s an ass.”
Ramsey chuckled. “How did a beautiful woman get engaged to an ass?”
“Beats me and it’s none of my business.”
“That’s the difference between me and you, cuz. I would make it my business, especially if she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. You know what they say about it not being over until the fat lady sings? Well, in this case, she’s not off limits until the wedding is over.”
“That’s not my style, Ram.”
“Typically, it’s not mine, either, being the loner that I am, but I’ve learned that with some things you need to know when and how to adjust your thinking, be flexible and restructure your thought process. Especially if it’s a woman you want.”
Dillon blinked, taken aback by Ramsey’s statement. “What makes you think she’s a woman I want?”
“I can hear it in your voice. Do you deny it?”
Dillon opened his mouth to do that very thing and then closed his mouth shut. No, he couldn’t deny it, because his cousin who knew him so well had just spoken the truth. And the question of the hour was whether or not he intended to do anything about it.
Chapter 5
Pam was trying, desperately so, to convince herself that the only reason she was sitting at the kitchen table and staring out the window was to study all the Indian paintbrushes that were still blooming this late in the year.
It wasn’t working.
Just like it wasn’t working to try and convince herself the only reason she’d gone to bed with thoughts of Dillon on her mind instead of the man she was engaged to marry was because Dillon had been to dinner the last couple of nights. The reason that argument wouldn’t hold up was because, although Fletcher had been dropping in for dinner quite often, she had yet to take visions of him to her bed. She had yet to remember, in vivid detail, what he’d been wearing the last time she’d seen him, and yet to hear the sound of his voice in her head in the wee hours of the morning.
So why was Dillon Westmoreland causing so much havoc in her life when she should be concentrating on setting the best date to marry Fletcher? The main thing that had been nagging at her since meeting Dillon was the fact that he could arouse feelings and sensations within her that Fletcher didn’t. Was that something she should be concerned about, she wondered.
She quickly decided that it didn’t really matter if she should be concerned, since Fletcher was the only one capable of getting her out of such a dismal situation. Their marriage would not be one of love and, the way things were looking, it wouldn’t be one of passion either. But she would make do. She really didn’t have a choice.
The ringing of the phone intruded her thoughts. Getting up from the table she quickly crossed the room to pick it up, but turned to make sure she still had a good view out the window. “Hello.”
“I called to see if you’ve come to your senses and called off your engagement.”
Pam couldn’t do anything, but shake her head and smile. She wasn’t sure who was worse, her sisters or her best friend from college, Iris Michaels. From Iris’s initial meeting with Fletcher, he had rubbed her the wrong way and she hadn’t gotten over it yet. “No, sorry, the wedding is still on, so I hope you haven’t forgotten your promise to be my maid of honor.”
Pam could picture Iris sitting behind the desk of the PR company she owned in Los Angeles with a beautiful view of the Pacific. Iris would be tapping a pen either on her desk or to the side of her face, trying to think of a way to get out of the promise she’d made their second year in college together over a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Their days in college had been hard. Money had been tight, so they had made do, shared practically everything and had become best friends for life.
Right out of college, Iris had met, fallen in love with and married Garlan Knight. Garlan, a stuntman, had been killed while working on a major film less than a year into their marriage. That was four years ago and, although Iris dated on occasion, she had long ago proclaimed that she would never give her heart to another man because the pain of losing the person she loved wasn’t worth it.
“I’m trying to forget I made that promise. So what’s been going on with you lately?”
At first Pam couldn’t decide whether she should mention anything about Dillon and then thought, why not? Chances were, when Iris came to visit, her sisters would tell her about him anyway, and then Iris would accuse her of holding secrets. “Well, there is something I need to tell you about. I had a visitor this week.”
While periodically glancing out the window, Pam told Iris how Dillon had shown up two nights ago. Surprisingly, Iris didn’t ask a lot of questions; she listened attentively, giving Pam the chance to finish. “So, there you have it,” Pam finally said, glad it was over and done with. She made an attempt to move to another subject—about how things were going at the drama school—when Iris stopped her.
“Hey, not so fast, Pam. What aren’t you telling me?”
Pam rolled her eyes. “I’ve told you everything.”
“Then why did you deliberately leave out any details about how this guy looks? You know I’m a visual person.”
Pam breathed in deeply. “He’s good-looking.”
“How good-looking?”
“Very good-looking, Iris,” she said, hoping that would be the end of it.
“On a scale of one to ten with ten being the sexiest, how would you rate him?” Iris asked.
“Why do you want to know?”
“Just answer the question, please,” Iris demanded.
When Pam didn’t say anything for a moment, deciding to keep her lips sealed, Iris said, “I’m waiting.”
Pam rolled her eyes again and then said, “Okay, he’s a ten.”
“A ten?”
“Yes, Iris, a ten. He is so darn pleasing to the eyes it’s a shame,” she said, inwardly blaming Iris for making her tell all.
“What about his personality?”
Pam thought about how dinner had gone yesterday and how pleasant it had been for her sisters to feel included in the dinner discussions. Dillon had held their focus because he had paid attention to them, as if what they had to say was important, not trivial like Fletcher would often do. Yes, she would have to say he had a nice personality.
“He’s nice, Iris, and his personality goes right along with it.”
“Would he be someone that would interest you if you weren’t engaged to Fletcher?”
Pam frowned. “Why would you ask me something like that when I am engaged to Fletcher?”
“Cut all the drama, Pam, and answer the question.”
Pam’s frown deepened because she knew the answer to Iris’s question without thinking much about it. “Yes, he would be. In a heartbeat.” And then because she had to tell someone and Iris, being her best friend, was the likely candidate, she said, “I’m attracted to him. Isn’t that awful?”
“Why is it awful? You and I both know why you’re marrying Fletcher, which I still think is a mistake. I refuse to believe there is not a bank anywhere that will loan you the money you need to pay off that second mortgage.”
“We’re talking about a million dollars, Iris. You know how much hassle you got from the banks when you wanted to borrow half that much to start your PR business. I have very little in savings and what I do have Jill will need for college next year. And Paige and Nadia need a home. I can’t expect them to move away from the only home they’ve known. A home that’s been in the Novak family for over a hundred years.” Pam sighed in frustration. “I still can’t believe Dad didn’t take all that into consideration when he took out that second mortgage.”
“If Fletcher was really a nice guy, he would cosign for you to get that money without any strings attached,” Iris said. “For him to put stipulations on his help by asking you to marry him is just downright underhanded, if you ask me.”
Pam didn’t say anything since she had heard it all from Iris before, several times. When Iris finally ended her spiel, Pam said, “Marrying Fletcher won’t be so bad, Iris.”
“It will be if you’re sentencing yourself to a life without love and passion, and we both know that you are. I loved Garlan and the passion we shared was wonderful. I can’t imagine being married to a man I didn’t love or who didn’t do anything for me sexually.”
Pam was silent for a moment and then said quietly, “Well, I can. I don’t have a choice, Iris.”
For a short while Iris didn’t say anything, either. “Then maybe now is the time to enjoy passion while you can.”
Pam blinked. “Just what are you suggesting?”
“You’ve admitted you’re attracted to Dillon Westmoreland, so take advantage of that attraction and think about yourself for a change, not the house or the land or your sisters. Think about Pamela.”
“I can’t do that,” Pam said.
“Sure you can. Are you going to deny you haven’t been thinking about Dillon Westmoreland in the wee hours of the night?”
Pam almost dropped the phone. “How did you know?”
Iris laughed. “Hey, you said the man is a ten. Men who are tens can’t help but find their way into a woman’s nightly dreams, regardless of whether she’s single, engaged or married. It happens. My advice to you is to bring him out of your dreams into your reality. You will be married to Fletcher until death do you part. Do you want to go through the next fifty, sixty or seventy years without feeling any passion again?”